After an inspection of the Steeplechase course at Hastings involving the Hawke’s Bay Racing CEO, Hawke’s Bay Racing Track Manager and local jumping trainer Paul Nelson, the Open Entry Steeplechase 4000m programmed for Hastings on Wednesday May 22nd has been abandoned.

A set of Cambridge Jumping trials have been scheduled for Tuesday 30 April. Nominations close with the Bureau at 12 noon Monday 29 April. There will need to be a minimum of 20 entries for them to proceed.

The trials that were due to take place at Te Teko on Tuesday 23 April will now be held on Friday 26 April subject to confirmation from St John’s. New nominations will be required for this meeting and close with the NRB on Thursday 25 April at 12 noon. The Club requires that over 100 entries are received in order for the trials to proceed.

A Mdn 1600m has been added to the Cambridge meeting at Te Rapa on Saturday 27 April. This race is for $10,000. The final race programmed for the Counties meeting on Friday 3 May is a Mdn 2100m - $10,000.

The Cambridge Jumping trials rescheduled for Tuesday 16 April have been postponed due to the hardness of the track and the corresponding light entries. NZTR and the club will look to schedule a new date within the next fortnight.

Due to a lack of opportunities during March a Mdn 2100m - $10,000, has been added to the Ashburton meeting on Thursday 14 March. This has been requested by the trainers’ association and will require reasonable nomination numbers to proceed.

The Mdn 1400m race on this day is now a Mdn 2YO+ 1400m race. 2YOs entered in this race receive a further 3kg weight allowance from the standard maiden weight scale. This alteration has been approved by the Central Regional Programming Committee.

The Ōtaki-Māori Racing Club warmly invites all Central Districts ex-trainers and ex-jockeys (and partners) as our special guests, to the annual Members Brunch prior to the Haunui Farm Group One WFA Classic Race Day, to be held on Saturday 23rd February 2019.

This race will run under the conditions of Set Weights and Penalties as set out in the NZTR Standard Regulations for Race meetings, and not Handicap conditions as published in the Nov/Dec Racing Programming Guide. Previously this race has been run as a Handicap. As this is a Group 3 race the alteration has been approved by the Pattern Committee.

Please note, withdrawals for the Wellington Cup, Telegraph, Thorndon Mile and NZ Oaks close at 10am today with the National Racing Bureau. Late nominations for the Herbie Dyke, Wellington Cup and NZ Oaks also close today at 10am.

The final race programmed for the Tauranga meeting on Friday 14 December is a Mdn 3YO 1200 - $10,000 while at Whangarei on Tuesday 18 December a Mdn 3YO 1000m - $10,000 has been added as the final race.

The final race programmed for the Cambridge meeting (Te Rapa) on Sunday 25 November is a Mdn 1400m - $10,000 while at Rotorua on Wednesday 28 November a R65 1400m - $10,000 has been added to the programme.

Today’s Te Aroha trials have been abandoned due to an issue with the track around the 500m mark. These trials have been re-scheduled for Tuesday at Te Aroha. Horses for the Tuesday trials will need to be re-nominated with the NRB. These nominations will close on Monday 29 October at 12 noon.

Due to very high rainfall in and around Cambridge the trials scheduled for Thursday 6 September have been pushed back a week to Thursday 13 September. The Avondale trials remain on Tuesday 11 September while Te Rapa trials (trial track) have been scheduled for Tuesday 18 September.

Following is the programme for the replacement Woodville meeting as well as confirmation of the Waipukurau meeting on 27 September which replaces the Otaki meeting on the same day. Also added is a 2YO race at Hawke’s Bay on 22 September.

Entries for the Al Basti Equiworld 46th New Zealand 2000 Guineas, the 14thCoupland’s Mile, the Christchurch Casino 155th New Zealand Cup and the gavelhouse.com NZ 1000 Guineas close at 4pm, Tuesday 4 September 2018.

An Industry day racemeeting has been scheduled for Woodville-Pahiatua RC at Woodville on Friday 14 September. This meeting has come about because of a lost day at Tauherenikau and few Industry days during this period in the Central Region bearing in mind that Wanganui on 20 September is largely a jumping day). A programme for this meeting will be notified later today.

The Woodville trials on 4 September have been cancelled with an alternative venue being looked at.

After further discussion with stakeholders and NZ Jumps Inc, and taking into account the likelihood of heavy track conditions, it has been decided that the Pakuranga Hunt Cup will now be run over 4200m. There is no appropriate start point at or near the 4800m mark at Te Aroha.

With the transfer of this meeting to Te Aroha all hurdle races will be run over about 3100m. The Mdn Chase will be run over about 3500m and the Bridges Insurance Pakuranga Hunt Cup will be run over about 4200m.

Due to heavy rain and prevailing track conditions at Te Rapa this Saturday’s Pakuranga meeting has been transferred to Te Aroha. Scratchings have been reinstated. More details will follow in a later communication.

The Wairarapa meeting scheduled for Thursday 23 August has been abandoned due to heavy and consistent rain. The track is particularly deep around the home turn and as such is inconsistent and inappropriate to race on. NZTR together with the regional programming chairman will look at any viable alternatives.

Due to an issue around the crossing area at Te Rapa the R65 and Jumpers 2200m (Am Riders) will now be reduced to 1600m. The R65 Hwt - 2200m on 2 September at Te Aroha has had the conditions amended to include jumpers.

The trials to be conducted on the trials track at Te Rapa on Tuesday will be for Open and Maiden horses (over 900m and 1100m) and will have a maximum of 6 horses per heat with the trials restricted to a total of 120 horses.

The Waipa trials scheduled for Tuesday 16 October will now be held on Thursday 18 October. This is due to the New Zealand Bloodstock breeze-ups on 16 October. As previously advised the Waipa September trials are on Tuesday 18 September with Avondale trialling on Tuesday 11 September.

Up to two trials over 1100m will be held at Taupo on Wednesday 22 August. These trials will be conducted prior to Race 1 and will be for horses that have placed in the first four in a Group Race. Priority will be given to those that have run in the first three. These trials will have a field size of 8 runners.

The Te Teko trials scheduled for Tuesday 7 August have been postponed until Monday 13 August due to sustained rain in the region (71mm since last Friday) and an unfavourable forecast for the next 48 hours. The trials at Avondale remain on Tuesday 14 August.

Nominations for Te Teko will close Friday 10 August at 12pm with the National Racing Bureau.

The race-meeting on Thursday 27 September will be conducted by the Waipukurau JC at Waipukurau. This meeting was formerly an Otaki meeting. Any distance and programming alterations will be advised in the next fortnight

Contrary to previous advice, in the event of the Open Entry Hurdle being divided and including a Maiden Hurdle, that race will be run over 3000m (not 2800m) as per the Restricted Open Hurdle. This change was made after advice from the jumping riders.

The final race programmed for the Manawatu meeting at Trentham will be a R65 1000m - $10,000. In the event of the Steeplechase being divided the distances will be 4000m for the Restricted Open Chase and 3200m for the Mdn Chase.

In order to not use the chute at Wanganui on Sunday 19 August the Mdn 1600m has been replaced with a Mdn F&M 1360m. The Wairarapa meeting on Thursday 23 August will have a Mdn 1600m added and the Mdn 1300m deleted.

The trials scheduled for Foxton on Tuesday 31 July will now be held on Wednesday 1 August. The distances for the 1600m races for the Levin meeting at Awapuni on 28 July will now be 1550m given the change in venue.

Just a reminder that if you are intending to be re-licensed for the 2018-2019 season you will need to have both an updated baseline concussion test, and have documentation that you have had a full medical in the last 6 months. The medical must be sent to the NZTR licensing department prior to your license being granted.

NZTR and Otaki-Maori RC had proposed the scheduling of a Trial meeting on Tuesday 26 June, restricted to a limited number of starters. Having given this further consideration, this meeting will not be scheduled.

This meeting, due to be run on Wednesday 13 June, has been transferred to Friday 15 June. The fields will remain the same and all scratchings re-instated. Please note the 48 hour rule will apply to horses that are in the fields at Teko and have been nominated for meetings on the weekend. The first race at Te Teko will be at 12.12pm.

Due to extremely heavy rain, surface water on the track and further rain predicted for today and tomorrow the meeting scheduled for Te Teko on Wednesday 13 June has been abandoned. NZTR, together with the club and New Zealand Racing Board are looking to find an alternative date to run this meeting.

Due to a communication error the Waimate track is currently a Dead6 and not Heavy as advised earlier. The nominations for ALL races at this meeting will now be open until 9am Wednesday morning. The R65 1800m race will be divided to make an eight race card.

The 2018/19 Racing Calendar was released on 1 June 2018. The dates have been approved by the NZRB Dates Committee, following three rounds of consultation with Codes, racing clubs and other recognised industry organisations (RIOs).

There will be no final race programmed for the Timaru meeting on Friday 1 June. There are opportunities in the South Island for all horses during this period. NZTR and the Club will look to divide a race at this meeting if numbers warrant it.

With a high number of horses looking to trial prior to the onset of winter tracks it has been decided, after talking with the trainers’ association, to add another set of trials to Taupo next Thursday 10 May. The Taupo track is currently in very good order. Nominations for these trials will close with the NRB on Wednesday 9 May at 12 noon.

There will be no final race programmed for the Matamata meeting on Wednesday 2 May. NZTR and the club will divide a race at this meeting if necessary. The final race for the Counties RC meeting on Friday 4 May is a Mdn 2YO – 1200m, $10,000.

The Otaki licence for Thursday 17 May 2018 has been transferred to the Wairarapa RC with the meeting to be held at Tauherenikau. This has necessitated some minor distance changes. The Mdn 1200m race will run over 1000m while the two 2100m races will become 2050m races.

There is no final race programmed for Tauranga on Thursday 26 April. NZTR together with the Club will look to divide a race if necessary. Nominations for this meeting close with the NRB on Monday 23 April.

Race MorningWeather: Overcast (Previously Fine @ 6.35) Now Raining | Now ShoweryTrack: Slow 8 | Now Slow 9Rail: True at the home straight, out 3m from 300m-800, out 4m from 800m-1300m out 3m 1300-1700 Weather and Track updated at 10.54am Sunday 15 April

The weather forecast for the next few days is very poor with large amount of rain predicted for the next 48 hours, together with very cold temperatures.If the predicted rain does come a decision will be made early tomorrow to postpone the trials to Tuesday 17 April 2018.

The Otaki-Maori licence for Thursday 3 May has been transferred to the Waipukurau Club and Racecourse while the Otaki track continues to recover from extensive renovation work. The programme for this meeting remains the same. A decision around the 17 May meeting at Otaki will be made in coming weeks.

The race meeting on Saturday 24 March will now be conducted at the Matamata Racecourse, which includes the Group 2 Windsor Park Trophy. As a result of this venue change the scheduled 2100m races will reduce to 2000m.

This change has necessitated the trials scheduled for Matamata on Tuesday 20 March to be transferred to Taupo.

There has been a R65 1400m and a Mdn 2200m added to the Avondale meeting for Wednesday 21 February. Both these races will be run for a stake of $10,000. NZTR together with the club will look at the possibility of dividing a further race should numbers warrant this.

Due to the Te Aroha races being abandoned the nominations for Wanganui, Auckland and Poverty Bay will be re-opened until 9am tomorrow (Wednesday morning). Preference will be given to horses that have been originally nominated for these meetings. There is a possibility that a race or races at Wanganui or Poverty Bay may be divided if appropriate numbers are reached.

In addition there will be races added to the Avondale meeting scheduled for next Wednesday. These will be advised later today or Wednesday morning.

The Te Aroha meeting scheduled for tomorrow (14 February) has been abandoned due to heavy rain and an unsuitable racing surface. NZTR along with other groups will look at options to cater for the horses that are missing out on a start at this meeting.

The 2 and 3YO race for Thursday 15 February was incorrectly weighted as a set weight race when it is actually a set weight and penalties race (as per January and February TRM). The weights for this race were corrected at 11.15am and the fields with amended weights for this race re-released.

Due to the cancellation of the Matamata trials on Tuesday replacement trials have been programmed for Taupo on Thursday 15 February. Nominations for these trials close with the Bureau on Wednesday 14 February at 12 noon.

The Matamata trials scheduled for Tuesday 13 February have been cancelled. The track is currently a Heavy 11 after 30mls of rain overnight. Significant rainfall is forecast for the next 24 hours. Matamata has their Premier Raceday on 24 February. NZTR is currently looking for an alternative venue/day for trials.

Please note the trials scheduled for Foxton on Tuesday 13 February have been moved to Thursday 15 February. The move has been necessitated due to the CD Starting Gates being unavailable on the Tuesday. We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.

Although having now ridden 60 winners Holly Andrew is still enitled to a 2kg claim at the Woodville meeting on Thursday. Holly was entiltled to a 2kg claim for this meeting as declaration of riders was prior to her riding a winner at Trentham. The declaration of rider time has not changed for this meeting despite the meeting moving back three days.

The Woodville-Pahiatua meeting has been re-scheduled for Thursday 25 January. The original fields will remain with all scratchings re-instated. The first race will be at 12.10pm with the last at 4.50pm. NZTR made this decision after consulting with the club and regional programming chairman. NZTR requested a forecast from NIWA specifically for Woodville. Their information for Thursday gave NZTR confidence to proceed with the meeting.

Due to a lack of opportunities in the Canterbury region during this period a Mdn 1200m race worth $10,000 has been added to the programme for the 27 January meeting. This was confirmed after consultation with the Trainers’ Association and the Club. There will be no races divided on this day with the total number of races programmed now 10.

The Omakau Races have been abandoned due to insufficient improvement in the wet area around the 350m point. The course was inspected by the RIU and Club officials this morning. A horse was galloped over the affected area and a decision made subsequent to that. NZTR, the club and the NZ Racing Board are looking at options to see whether this meeting can be re-scheduled. There will be a further update later this morning.

The Omakau track has been inspected at 5.40pm Tuesday 2 January. Stipendiary Stewards have said that after a day of warm, drying weather, the part of the track that was initially concerning has improved considerably. The surface water between the 350m and 250m has desiccated. Two horses will be galloped just prior to 7.00am in the morning as a measure to confirm that the track is suitable to hold the race meeting. With a positive weather forecast it is envisaged that there will be no problems with the racing surface and the meeting will proceed as programmed.

Please note that the Tapanui RC (@Gore 24 December) will pay the rider fee on behalf of owners for all horses who do NOT place in the first three, while at Kurow on 30 December the 3 and 4yo 1800m race will now be worth $14,000, an increase of $4,000 from what has been advertised.

The Matamata Racing Club have carried out further aeration to the inside 15 metres of the Matamata course proper on top of the annual renovation completed in October. The running rail has been set at 2.5 metres for the December 20 twilight meeting with additional decompaction having been carried out inside this area.Leading into the December 20 twilight meeting, horses will continue to gallop on the racing strip, as is current practice, to ensure an accurate track rating is supplied, and ensure rider and horse confidence in the track.

The Matamata meeting on Friday 8 December has been abandoned after a horse slipped in Race 1.

This meeting will not be re-scheduled as the majority of horses who did not race at Matamata have options at Hawke’s Bay, Tauranga and Ellerslie over the next nine days. NZTR in association with the respective clubs will look to divide races where possible at these meetings.

The final race programmed for Waipukurau on Sunday 10 December is a Mdn 1600m while at Hawke’s Bay on Thursday 14 December a Mdn 1300m has been added to the programme. Both races will be run for $10,000.

The RIU inspected the Waipa track at 1.30pm Monday ahead of the November 21 meeting. They have assessed the track as a Good2 as opposed to the Fast1 previously advised by the club and posted on this website.

The Cambridge trials for Thursday 9 November have been over-subscribed with approximately 70 horses being eliminated. NZTR are currently looking for another venue to hold a further set of trials for the week beginning Monday 13 November.

8 heats of jump-outs were conducted at Wingatui today. They were held over distances from 600 metres to 1000 metres on the course proper.Senior riders Shankar Muniandy, Courtney Barnes and Jacob Lowry all rode at the jump-outs. The track rated a Good 3 borderline Dead 4. All riders were very happy with the condition of the track and there were no issues.

Due to the building of new tie-up stalls at Taupo they are no longer able to trial on Thursday 9 November. The Cambridge trials have now come forward to this date. NZTR will gauge if a further set of trials is required the following week.

Race DayWeather: Was Showery Now OvercastTrack: Has been downgraded from Slow 9 to Heavy 10 following Race 1Rail: Out 7m | 6mm Rain OvernightWeather and Track updated following Race 1, Friday 27 October

With the abandonment of eight races at Otago yesterday a Mdn 1400m has been added to the next Otago programme on 7 November. This is to alleviate pressure on the Mdn 1335m at Gore next Thursday given the abandoned Otago meeting had two Mdn 1400m races lost. NZTR and the Gore RC will look to divide other race(s) at Gore on Thursday 2 November where necessary.

Due to over 100 eliminations from the Waipa trials, and after discussion with the Trainers’ Association, an extra set of trials has been programmed at Cambridge on Tuesday 24 October with nominations closing on Monday 23 October at 12noon. The Te Aroha trials will now take place on Wednesday 25 October (previously Thursday) to avoid a clash with ‘Apprentice Only Day’ at Taranaki.

The Waipa trials have been significantly over-subscribed with a large number of eliminations required. The horses eliminated in order are:All 4YO+ maiden horses3YO maiden horses who have had a raceday start

It would be appreciated if nominations for these meetings, which close at noon Wednesday, could be made early or via the trainers’ service centre. From 10am – 11am on Wednesday The Bureau priority will be making up the race-day fields for Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

74mm of rain fell at the Hastings track from the abandonment of racing up until Tuesday evening October 10th Warm fine weather has seen the track improve quickly with a rating of a Good2 recorded this morning. Since racing was abandoned on Livamol Classic day the track has been vertidrained on the advice of NZTR’s Garry Foskett. 18-20mm of irrigation will be applied today Monday with the forecast for only the odd shower during the week. A horse will be galloped Wednesday morning and a decision on any further irrigation made then.

The Woodville meeting on Thursday 19 October has had the ‘Apprentice Rider Only’ conditions removed from the R65 1600m and Mdn 1400m races. All races will be open to all riders. This is as a result of the abandonment of the Wairarapa racemeeting.

Please note that Trois Vallees is shown as a first starter in publications. This horse has had three starts in Australia for a 5th, 6th and 9th. Its most recent start was a 9th of 9 at Cranbourne on 3 March 2017. This horse subsequently won a trial at Te Teko on 26 September 2017 which is shown in publications.

Hawkes Bay Racing in conjunction with NZTR will explore all opportunities to relocate the Livamol Classic to a racemeeting sometime in the next two weeks. Further details are expected to be able to be released early next week.

The Hastings track was this morning rated a Dead4 after a horse from the Lowry/Cullen stable worked against the rail and a penetrometer reading was taken. With no rain in the forecast between now and Livamol Classic race day Saturday October 7, 8-10mm of irrigation will be applied Tuesday afternoon/evening. There will be no further irrigation.

High Temperatures(24-27 degrees) coupled with strong north westerly winds early in the week have seen the Hastings track produce a penetrometer reading of 1.9(Fast1) this morning. Forecast rain during the week has failed to materialize with just 0.2mm of rain recorded Thursday. Irrigation of 14mm will be applied today Friday with further irrigation to take place as required over the next 4 days.

First Withdrawals for the following races are due Wednesday 27th September at 11am....Coupland’s Bakeries Mile1000/2000 GuineasNZ CupFirst Late Nominations for these races are also due Wednesday 27th September at 12pm.

The Foxton trials which were cancelled on Tuesday 26 September have now been rescheduled for Tuesday 3 October. Consequently the Waverley trials have gone back eight days and will run on Wednesday 18 October to avoid the ‘Breeze Ups’ at Te Rapa. There now won’t be any trials at Wanganui which were pencilled in for late October.

Following an RIU inspection of the track on Friday the 1400m races scheduled for Avondale on Wednesday 27 September will now be run over 1370m due to the 1400m starting point being particularly wet. All races at this meeting have been left open with the Mdn 1200m likely to be divided.

A horse from the Lowry/Cullen Stable galloped on the course proper yesterday(Tuesday)morning with the rider indicating a track in the Dead4/Good3 range. The penetrometer reading suggested a Good3 track. After forecast rain only delivered 1.5mm yesterday irrigation was applied to the Hastings track Tuesday evening. 14mm of irrigation was applied with the rating this morning a Dead4.

The Otaki Licence for Thursday September 28 has transferred to the Waipukurau JC. This has necessitated the 2YO race to be transferred to Taranaki on Saturday 30 September and be run as a Mdn 2YO 990m - $10,000. A Mdn 1400m and Mdn 3YO 1200m have been added to the Waipukurau programme. Both these races will run for $10,000. Waipukurau ran Jumpouts today (19 Sept) on a track described as a Dead4/Dead5.

Due to the 1600m starting point at Avondale not being suitable for use on 27 September the R75 1600m will now revert to 1400m. The Mdn 1600m at this meeting has been deleted while a Mdn 1400m has been added. The club will divide if necessary. On 4 October at Whangarei the R75 1400m programmed will now be run over 1600m.

Following a fine week with temperatures in the early 20s the track has come back to a Good3 after 12mm of irrigation on Tuesday. A further 10mm of irrigation will be applied today Friday. There is some rain forecast early next week and this will be factored into any further irrigation.

With just 3mm of rain and strong westerly winds since Tarzino Trophy day the Hastings track has dried very quickly. After galloping a horse this morning on the course proper and doing a penetrometer reading the track is rated a Good3. With little or no rain forecast in the next 7 days a decision has been made to apply 12 mm of irrigation today, Tuesday September 12. The decision to irrigate early has been taken in the interests of providing the best possible surface for Windsor Park Plate day on Saturday September 23.For any further information please contact CEO Andrew(Butch)Castles 021 384 289

The Otago meeting to be run this Friday 15 September has been transferred to Oamaru. The Wingatui track has received over 30mms of rain in the last 10 days and is currently very heavy. The programme and distances remain the same.

The Matamata Races scheduled for Wednesday 13 September has been cancelled due to a lack of entries. At the closing of nominations 38 horses had nominated for the meeting with the prospect of getting sufficient numbers to hold even a restricted meeting unlikely. NZTR will look to add or divide races to Northern meetings in the coming week or weeks. The continuation of the wet weather particularly in the north has hampered the preparation of horses for many trainers.

After an inspection of the Cambridge track on Friday 8 September the trial meeting scheduled for Tuesday 12 September has been cancelled. The track was walked by RIU, Trainer and Club representatives. This group was unanimous in deciding the saturated track was not safe to hold a full set of trials. NZTR together with the Northern Programming Chairman will continue to investigate alternatives.

Due to a large number of horses trialling at Foxton this week the next Central trials to be held at Foxton have been pushed back a week to 26 September in order to give the Foxton track more time to recover. NZTR understands there are Jumpouts planned at Levin for 20 September.

The Cambridge trials scheduled for Thursday 7 September have been abandoned due to heavy rain. They have been re-scheduled for Tuesday 12 September with nominations closing with the NRB on Monday 11 September at 12 noon. The Avondale trials will now be held on Friday 15 September. Waipa trials remain on Tuesday 19 September.

The final race programmed for Matamata on Wednesday 13 September will be a Maiden 1200m - $10,000, while at Rotorua on Sunday 17 September a Maiden 1400m - $10,000 has been added to the programme as the final race.

The Te Teko trials will now be held on Thursday 31 August. The fields remain as per those scheduled for Tuesday. Any horse that is scratched will not be charged the entry fee. The track is currently Heavy. There are further trials scheduled for Cambridge on 7 September.

The annual awards night is to be held in the Cheval Room Hastings racecourse on Friday 1 September, the night before the Tarzino Trophy- Daffodil Raceday.Anyone coming to Hawke’s Bay for the races is invited to attend. Tickets at $85 each including a 3 course dinner and arrival drinks can be purchased by contacting [email protected]

Please note that the El Roca Trophy (3YO 1200m) to be run on 2 September at Hawke’s Bay now has Listed Status and will be run for a stake of $50,000 - $31,250, $10,000, $5,000, $2,500, $1,250. Nomination Fee: $143.75 Withdrawal Fee: $431.25

An Open 1100m Trial will be conducted at the Racing Taupo meeting on 18 August. The trial will be restricted to horses that have been placed in a Group race and preference will be given to horses holding a nomination for a Group 1 race during the Bostock New Zealand Hawke’s Bay Spring Carnival.No more than two heats will be conducted. Nominations will close with the National Racing Bureau at 12 noon on Tuesday 15 August.

Please note the meeting scheduled for Otaki on Saturday 19 August has been transferred to Tauherenikau. As a result the Wairarapa RC meeting scheduled for Tauherenikau on Thursday 24 August has been transferred to Woodville.

Due to the Oamaru JC having their late July meeting abandoned and their wish to have a replacement date, it has been approved by the New Zealand Racing Board that they will now hold the licence for Friday August 25. Oamaru’s 25 October date will now be taken by the Otago RC, effectively a swap of dates and venues by the two clubs.

If at the closing of withdrawals on Wednesday morning there are sufficient numbers NZTR, in association with the club, will split the hurdle race into a Winners Hurdle ($20,000) and a Special Condition Mdn Hurdle ($15,000). The special condition relates to the winner of the Mdn Hurdle on Wednesday 9 August being able to start in the Mdn Hurdle on Saturday 12 August and to carry a 1.5kg penalty.

Please note there has been a change to the Northern Region Trials programme.The trials scheduled for Waikato on Tuesday 15 August will not proceed.As a result an additional set of trials has now been scheduled for Avondale on Friday 11 August. Nominations for these trials will close with the NRB at 12 noon on Thursday 10 August.

Two horses galloped at Phar Lap Raceway on Saturday afternoon in the presence of the RIU and Club Officials.Both groups were satisfied with track conditions in terms of Sunday's races. The track remains a heavy 11.

The Levin meeting at Otaki on Saturday which was abandoned has now been re-scheduled to Awapuni on Monday 31 July. Please check www.nzracing.co.nz for confirmed times. All scratchings will be re-instated. Please note the races scheduled for 1600m (Races 4 and 8) will now be run over 1550m while Race 3 will revert from 1350 back to 1400m.

The Levin race-meeting at Otaki scheduled for Saturday 29 July has been abandoned due to the Otaki course being saturated. The course received 29mm rain overnight on an already sodden track. The meeting cannot be rescheduled at Otaki in the coming days.

Due to the unavailability of the Foxton Racecourse the trials scheduled for May 2nd have been cancelled. However a new set of trials has been scheduled to take place at Waverley on Tuesday 9th May. Entries will close with the NRB on Monday May 8th

Please note the Auckland Racing Club will conduct Trials on the inside track at Ellerslie on Tuesday 2 May. Nominations will close for these trials with the National Racing Bureau at 12 noon on Monday 1 May.

Please note the Cambridge Jump Trials scheduled for Friday 21st April have been rescheduled to Friday 28th April 2017.Nominations will close Thursday 27th April at 12pm with the National Racing Bureau.

Taupo trials have been scheduled for Monday 24 April. Nominations for these trials will close with the Racing Bureau on Friday 21 April at 12 noon. The trials for Wednesday 26 April at Te Teko have now been cancelled.

Canterbury Trials now Tuesday 2 MayThe Canterbury trials at Rangiora scheduled for Monday 8 May have been brought forward to Tuesday 2 May. The move provides a better spread between the trials meetings on Tuesday 4 April and Tuesday 23 May 2017.

With today’s cancellation of the Avondale trials, NZTR in conjunction with the Avondale Jockey Club and New Zealand Trainers’ Association are working on replacement set of trials early next week. This decision will be made as soon as possible.

The Waipa Racemeeting scheduled for tomorrow has been abandoned due to torrential and persistent rain. The RIU and Club representatives inspected the track on Tuesday afternoon after the track had received 54mm of rain this morning. The forecast for the next 24 hours is for further heavy rain. The Counties nominations for Sunday 9 April remain open and NZTR will look to add a race or races to meetings in the next two weeks.

As a result of the abandonment of the Wyndham RC meeting on Sunday NZTR have announced a new Wyndham RC meeting to be run at Gore on Thursday 23 March. The new meeting will be a six race programme with provision for divisions if required.

The unusually high number of race meeting abandonments in the first four months of the 2016-17 season has been a concern and a cause of frustration for New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing (NZTR) and our stakeholders. Click here for more...

Trainer Allan Sharrock has advised that at the conclusion of its previous preparation KAWI underwent minor wind surgery in an attempt to rectify a breathing issue. He has been happy with the results during its current preparation. KAWI returns to racing this Saturday at Hastings.

Concussion testing in Waikato region required for all jockeys to be held at Cambridge apprentice school Monday 18th April and Matamata racecourse Tuesday 19th April from 9am any questions contact Philippa on 0277052597

Trainers please be aware that you can no longer enter a horse into a race or trial without having gear declared.Once gear has been lodged it must still be verified by the stipendiary stewards, so there could potentially be a delay in being able to nominate your horse via the Trainers Service Centre.